Rape statistics worrying: CFCC

Sifundiso Ndlovu Chronicle Reporter
ABOUT 80 percent of sexual violence victims are abused by people they know, according to statistics released by Contact Family Counseling Centre in Bulawayo yesterday.
Mthandazo Maphosa, a field officer at Contact Family Counseling Centre — an organisation that offers free counseling to victims of sexual violence — said the statistics were worrying and showed that anyone could be a victim.

“From the cases we attended from 2007 to June this year, 80 percent of victims are abused by people they know who include relatives, neighbours, friends, teachers and prophets,” she said.

The Contact Family Counseling Centre data also showed that 12 percent of those who visited the centre were abused by strangers while eight percent did not disclose anything about their attackers.

Maphosa said there was a fear that the eight percent could have been perpetrated by relatives whom victims are afraid to name.
Contact Family Counseling Centre attended to 624 cases in 2012, 521 last year and has so far had 280 cases this year mainly from Bulawayo and surrounding areas.

The statistics show that relatives were involved in 76 percent of the cases reported last year with uncles and cousins being the major culprits.
Neighbours, boyfriends and herdsmen were involved in more that 20 percent of the reported cases last year.

Maphosa expressed concern that the community is quick to label girls that accuse their boyfriends of rape as loose while in most cases the age difference shows that the abusers would have duped or threatened the minors.

“The community should understand that abusers use a variety of means to trick, force and intimidate their victims even when there is a relationship,” she said.
Maphosa advised parents to talk to their children and ensure that they do not view explicit films.

“Parents must ensure their children know that even some of the people they trust can abuse them. They must control their children as well so that they view films within their age,” she said.

Maphosa bemoaned the continued reluctance by some victims to report perpetrators to the police and interference by relatives and friends.
Last week, police warned family members against negotiating with abusers for compensation and urged them to report offenders to law enforcement agents.